Understanding Perpetrators of Intimate Partner Violence (IPV)

Abstract

This report summarises findings from a project funded by the Home Office Perpetrator fund, which explored the characteristics, needs, and outcomes of those engaging with Domestic Abuse Perpetrator Programmes (DAPPs) within England and Wales between 2018 and 2021.

Research suggests that the aetiology of domestic violence and abuse (DVA), including intimate partner violence (IPV), is complex, and that traditional feminist explanations of these behaviours may be inadequate in isolation. Moreover, whilst several DAPPs are available and accessible within England and Wales, current evaluative research suggests that their efficacy may be limited (potentially as a function of their construction around feminist, rather than vulnerability-based approaches).

The current project sought to utilise data from 1,060 DAPP service users to better understand their characteristics, needs, and outcomes, to help inform discourse around current efficacy of DAPPs within England and Wales. Analysis was conducted on three themes of variables: demographic characteristics/abuse context, programme characteristics, and outcomes.

Descriptive statistics revealed a client profile high in need, for example in relation to ACEs, mental health issues, and substance use. Several questions were also raised in relation to the type of data collected (for example, what was meant by ‘voluntary’ versus ‘mandatory’ attendance). Interestingly, both client and caseworker ratings indicated that, on average, programmes were also not hugely effective across several measures, and that few variables predicted strongly predicted outcomes. However, other meaningful relationships did emerge, for example between demographic/context variables (i.e., risk level and type of abuse).

Taken together, results suggest that DAPPs in England and Wales aren’t currently reaching maximum efficacy in helping to facilitate behavioural change in DVA perpetrators, and that the data currently gathered by such programmes may require revision. This is discussed in relation to the structure and theoretical approach of the programmes included in this dataset.